Iruka Sensei
by Wicked Raygun
Summary: After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 1

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by…You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 1**

It had nearly been an entire week since the Genin Graduation – since the night Naruto had discovered the reason why he had been shunned for his entire life.

That night Naruto had behaved like a true Ninja of the Leaf, mastering an A-ranked ninjutsu and using it to defend his teacher, Umino Iruka, and soundly defeating Mizuki.

It still made Iruka smile.

Iruka had only been released from the hospital that morning, he had been very lucky that Mizuki's aim had been just slightly off. Another centimeter and he would have been paralyzed for the rest of his life – and that was assuming he wasn't instantaneously killed in the first place. Instead all that was left of his near-death encounter was a large scar on his back. And that was a more than fair trade-off for not dying, in his opinion.

Iruka sensed a presence and turned to see a female ANBU operative at his bedroom window. Many ninjas would ask if an ANBU operative ever simply knocked, but he knew better.

ANBU never knocked.

"You are out of uniform, Iruka-san," she said before tossing him a new forehead protector. "Danzo-sama would like to know your answer now."

Instead of answering right away, Iruka meticulously tied the forehead protector around his head. "Please tell Danzo-sama that my answer has not changed. I enjoy teaching."

The operative nodded her head slightly – the ANBU version of a bow.

"Very well, Iruka-san. In that case, Danzo-sama would like to express that should you change your mind, the offer is still on the table – for now," she said, the last two words being an obvious message.

Danzo would wait, but not forever. That suited Iruka just fine. His time as an ANBU wasn't something he regretted, exactly, but it was something he preferred to forget. The nightmares were more than enough.

"Also, the Hokage would like to speak with you immediately," the operative said, before disappearing out the window.

Iruka frowned once he was sure the ANBU was truly gone. Any order from the Hokage no matter how mundane should have taken precedence over an offer from Danzo. Was this another one of his subtle manipulations? Or was this simply a case where an ANBU operative made a simple mistake? This train of thought didn't sit well with Iruka, since it led to not so comfortable conclusions.

Finally, he shook his head in disgust. Head games like these were one of the reasons he had ultimately left ANBU. He had left over a year ago, and yet the paranoia had never really gone away.

When he had been assigned as a teacher at the academy, he was more than a little depressed. He had felt it beneath him, and when he had discovered that he was to be responsible for Naruto he was sure he was being mocked somehow – and having been on the cusp of burnout hadn't helped any.

But little by little the prankster's antics and attitude had done something to him. He felt more like himself than he had in years. He was smiling again. It wasn't just Naruto either – all his students had made their way into his heart.

_Little brats_, he thought affectionately as he took a moment to take in the class photo that he had taken a couple months ago and that now hung from his wall. It showed him and all the fourth year academy students – including a scowling, tied-up Uzumaki Naruto, who had tried to skip class again that day. Mizuki had been the one to take the picture, something he was very glad for now in retrospect. It meant that he wouldn't have to look at that traitor's face. As far as he was concerned, life imprisonment was too good for him.

Perhaps placing his foot atop Naruto's prostrate form like a game hunter bragging about a particularly impressive catch had been a bit impulsive – but it really couldn't have been helped. There was just something about Naruto that brought out his very own prankster persona – something he hadn't indulged in since he became a genin.

Iruka finished putting on his spare chuunin vest – the other having been decimated by Mizuki – and then quickly checked his weapons pouch. Kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, rope, first aid kit – yes, all there. He had just been released from the hospital so he doubted that he was being assigned a mission. Still, one did not meet with the Hokage ill-prepared to leave at a moment's notice.

He was just about to leave his room, but stopped at the door. He turned and stared at an old cabinet. Before he was consciously aware of it, he had walked over and opened the bottom drawer. Inside there was his old ANBU mask and a small sword, with a hidden length of ninja wire built into the hilt – an ANBU assassination weapon. He hadn't used it since he left – and maybe that's why Mizuki so effectively got the jump on him. He was a weapons specialist, after all.

With a sigh, he attached the sword by its scabbard to his back.

Perhaps it was time to put old demons to bed.

* * *

><p>Iruka arrived at the Hokage Tower and was promptly sent into the office, where he found the Hokage agitatedly smoking his pipe. Sarutobi Hiruzen, the third Hokage of Konoha, rarely smoked during office hours – although he often kept the pipe in his mouth so he could chew on the end. The Hokage had once confided in him that it was there to help him avoid shooting his mouth off at the latest supplicant who annoyed him that day.<p>

"Thank you for arriving so quickly, Iruka-kun, especially given your recent injuries."

"It was nothing, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage stood there, rigid and saying nothing for nearly an entire minute before he spoke again.

"Did you ever know Hatake Kakashi?"

"I – I know **of** him, Hokage-sama. But, no, I do not know him personally. He was before my time in ANBU."

"I've just been notified of something that I trust you will keep to yourself for the time being – Hatake Kakashi has been assassinated."

The Copy Ninja? Assassinated? That – that was impossible!

"Who – who could do such a thing? The man is a legend!"

"And for good reason. But even legends can be killed." The Third Hokage sighed deeply.

After a moment, Iruka finally asked the obvious questions.

"Did we locate the – uh, the body?"

"Yes."

"Perhaps, it's not my place, but is – well, did he still have the Sharingan?"

The Hokage stared at him for a long moment, before he answered. "That part is classified, and will be handled by an investigation team."

"I understand, Hokage-sama," he said and bowed respectfully.

Only he didn't. Not really. Why was he being given this information in the first place? He wasn't a friend to Kakashi. He certainly wasn't family, either. And if he wasn't meant to be part of the investigation, why tell him anything at all?

A shinobi of Kakashi's renown and prowess being killed was a big deal. His death literally weakened the village's reputation. And if, as Iruka expected, his death was to be kept a secret for at least the time-being then, again, why tell him?

"I see you are confused," Sarutobi said with a small amount of mirth. Not much really, just a bit to break the tension. "You are wondering why you are being given this information."

Iruka nodded.

"The truth is I need to ask a service of you. And in order to perform this service you require this information. But before we get to that, allow me to congratulate you. As of this moment you are now promoted to the rank of Jounin."

Iruka rocked back on his heels in stunned disbelief. "But, Hokage-sama, I never requisitioned a promotion."

Nor did he ever intend to.

"Of course, you did. Months ago. Why I have your paperwork right here," the Third said slyly while showing him a folder with some obviously forged paperwork.

"Oh, of course," Iruka said slowly, realizing this was a part of his mission. "I guess I forgot. My mistake."

Inwardly, Iruka cringed. Was he to be taken away from the Academy? That seemed likely. It seemed so unfair. Just when he was starting to truly love his job, it was being taken away from him.

"Do not worry, Iruka-kun. I understand how the memory can slip so easily. So you may also have forgotten about your request for a genin squad," he said leadingly.

Iruka blinked several times, but said nothing. He was being railroaded.

"I approve your request, by the way." But then his expression became serious again. "I need you to be the Jounin-sensei of the team Kakashi would have led." The Hokage passed him another folder.

Iruka went through the folder's contents, and saw three names:

Uchiha Sasuke – which made sense given how Kakashi was the only other person in the village who had the Sharingan.

Haruno Sakura – a good student, but Iruka had doubts about her resolve to be an effective shinobi.

And then—

Uzumaki Naruto – Ah, now it was beginning to make sense.

Considering how many shinobi were prejudiced against the boy finding a proper jounin-sensei could be difficult, but not impossible. There had to be other options in the village – shinobi who could better train Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura.

"You are aware that I am young and relatively inexperienced? I understand the special difficulties involved in finding a teacher for Naruto, but are you sure this is in his best interests?"

The Sandaime Hokage's lips shifted upwards in amusement. It was one of his more endearing and infuriating quirks that he would often stare at one of his subordinates in a "I know something you don't know" manner.

"As for your age, you could have made Jounin before your time in ANBU had you ever requested it. Many people considerably younger and less experienced than you have done so. And, yes, there are other options, although admittedly not many. I offer this to you because you have bonded with Naruto already. You have already demonstrated that you would die for him."

The hokage took a long drag on his pipe and blew it out, before he continued.

"But truthfully this has more to do with Sasuke. I've read his progress reports and psychological profile and they have me worried. Being an orphan yourself, I think you could possibly reach him. You are already one of the few people he respects after all – Allow me to say again, this is not an order. You can refuse this assignment. There will be no repercussions. But I believe you can do this better than anyone else. You are my first choice."

Iruka was quiet for a moment, as he digested everything the Hokage had told him. He was still doubtful he could train them properly. Naruto and Sasuke were obviously front-line ninjutsu types, and while he certainly knew a few things, ninjutsu had never really been his strong suit. And Sakura, with her very precise chakra manipulation, would be better off training with a Genjutsu specialist, or joining the Medical Corps.

He was the wrong person for this, for so many reasons. The only reason he was still considering this was because the Hokage himself, had personally asked him. He looked into the eyes of the Sandaime and made his decision.

Iruka stood up slowly and bowed. "I will do my best, Hokage-sama."

**End Chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 2

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by…You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 2**

Iruka did his best to hide his anxiety in front of his students. Well, former students anyway. A mentor must be calm and confident, so he tried to exude that in every possible way: from his posture to his tone of voice. Still, any competent Chuunin would have noticed him shuffling the papers in his hands more than necessary, not to mention the long pauses before he spoke.

He began to list off the team compositions one-by-one. He tried not to wince as he announced the teams marked for failure. The true final exam was one based on the concept of teamwork. The actual form of the test varied from teacher to teacher, but the goal was always the same. The students had to be able to work together, or they were sent back.

Every year the academy teachers came up with the compositions. Unofficially, he was meant to create two types of teams: ones meant to pass, the others to fail. It was heartbreaking in a way, since he knew he could be potentially shattering a child's dream, but it was also necessary. Better a broken heart, than a corpse on the battlefield.

And truthfully he had only expected two real teams this year. The others were far too self-absorbed. Oh, they were good kids, for the most part; they just weren't ready to be ninja. And now he was expected to lead a team consisting of Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto. Only the thing was he had fully expected Sasuke and Sakura to fail the final test.

Haruno Sakura was both overly-confident and dismissive of anyone who wasn't Uchiha Sasuke. She was brilliant, and worked hard on her studies, but physically she held herself back. She had no real drive to be a ninja as well, which worried him more. She had potential to be sure. He had never seen anyone with her astounding level of chakra control – even in ANBU. With some fine-tuning she could be a genjutsu master, or possibly an amazing field medic, but without something to push her, it was pointless. Raw skill only got you so far.

Now Uchiha Sasuke was a prodigy when it came to mastering the ninja arts. Outwardly he was everything one could hope for in a Genin. But if you looked past the sparkle, you could see that he was also mentally fragile. Or perhaps, "fragile" wasn't quite the right word for it. "Unstable" might be better. He needed to be handled with care, the way one would handle a dud explosive tag, not because he might break at the slightest provocation, but because he could potentially explode in your face.

He'd already seen it once this year. A student had said something to set him off during a spar, and Sasuke shattered his leg – not broke, shattered. Yes, it could have been construed as an accident, an overeager student simply going too far, but Iruka never thought that was the case. It had seemed cold, and calculated. Frankly, it unnerved him. And when he tried to get Sasuke suspended for it, he had been overruled. Mizuki had been the one in charge of physical fitness at the time, not him.

Worse, he rejected any attempts to console him, or try to get close to him. Iruka himself had felt sorry for him. And who wouldn't. To lose your entire family in one night, and the perpetrator be your own brother? Anyone would have a hard time coming to grips with that. And Sasuke clearly hadn't. Iruka had tried so many times to engage the boy, to get him to talk, to open up somehow. It was pointless. Sasuke didn't want help from anyone.

Uzumaki Naruto was a different story.

His problem had always been academic. Yes, he was a little immature, but Iruka had seen worse. Hell, he had taken orders from worse, so that didn't worry him. He wanted to be a part of a team, to work with other people. As starved as he was for friendship, you could potentially place him on any team and he would find a way to work with them.

Well, any team except for one with Uchiha Sasuke on it. Naruto hated him. And of course adding his unrequited crush, Haruno Sakura, to the mix was just a bad joke. It was bound to create a self-destructive feedback loop. Sakura would fawn over Sasuke, which would infuriate Naruto. Sasuke would in turn ignore him, making Sakura fawn even more over him being cool, infuriating Naruto even more. And so on, and so on…

And this was his team. Joy.

Iruka had brought up these concerns to the Hokage. But his only words on the matter were that if they didn't pass the test, then that was the end of it and he shouldn't worry about it.

But Iruka did worry. Naruto had already failed his academy graduation twice before. To finally offer him his own forehead protector, signifying he was a ninja of the Leaf, and to simply take it back? It just seemed so callous, so cruel. On any other team, Naruto would thrive. But on this team, he might not even get his chance for another six months. And Iruka suspected that even Naruto's nearly limitless optimism would fade at that.

These thoughts swirled in his mind like a whirlpool, troubling him. With a silent sigh, Iruka announced the members of Team 7 – his team.

Or at least he hoped.

* * *

><p>All of the students had been picked up by their respective Jounin Senseis, and now only Team 7 remained. They Genin knew they were a team, they just had no idea who their master was.<p>

Iruka took his time carefully stacking up all his paperwork, and made a point to leave it in his office. Well, former office now. He would have to retrieve his private stuff later. He locked up and walked toward his team.

Sasuke looked bored, but then again, when didn't he? Sakura was anxiously moving her knees from side-to-side, unable to sit still. Occasionally she would try to sneak a peek at Sasuke and then start to blush. Naruto meanwhile seemed as if he was moments away from spontaneously combusting, he looked so excited. This was tempered, of course, by his smiling at Sakura and subsequent scowling at Sasuke.

When he finally was in front of them, he silently stood at parade rest, his eyes moving from one student to another.

This lasted for almost a minute before Sakura quietly asked, "Um, Iruka-sensei, is something wrong?"

Iruka still said nothing. Another lengthy span of time went by, wherein the three Genin settled down and began to fidget under his evaluation. The tension in the air was palpable.

"The three of you will get something to eat, and then meet me on the playground in one hour."

Looks of comprehension spread on Sasuke and Sakura's faces, but not Naruto's.

"But, Iruka-sensei, we're supposed to meet up with our new sensei."

Iruka smiled only slightly. "You just did."

As he was walking out of the classroom he had to suppress a large grin when he heard Naruto loudly whoop in joy.

* * *

><p>Amazingly enough, things had somehow gotten worse. The three Genin were far away from each other when he arrived. They weren't so much as looking at one another when he got there. How much could possibly happen in an hour?<p>

And to think they weren't even teenagers yet.

Iruka repressed another sigh, choosing instead to clear his throat to catch their attention. The three Genin turned toward him, and he smiled at them.

"It's tradition that we all introduce ourselves to one another. Obviously you all know each other from class a little bit, but this is different. The bonds from your first team can last a lifetime. After all, you'll doubtless have to depend on one another for survival some day. How about you just start with your names, your goals and why you want to be ninja. Who wants to go first?"

Sakura raised her arm. "Um, Sensei, maybe you can go first?"

Iruka shrugged. "Sure. I'm Umino Iruka. My goal is to have a family some day. And I became a ninja because I wanted to honor my parents' memory."

He noticed Naruto's wince when he mentioned honoring his parents' memory and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Your parents are dead?" Sakura asked in shock. She quickly covered her mouth, when she realized that she might have been rude. "I'm sorry, Iruka-sensei. I didn't mean to pry."

He just waved off her concern. "It's alright, Sakura. I don't mind talking about them. It helps me remember them. Besides, as your sensei, I want you to get comfortable with the idea of asking me questions – it's even more important now than back in the classroom. And, yes, my parents were both ninja who died while on duty. I was very young when it happened."

Sasuke seemed to be staring at him very intently.

"Any other questions?"

"How did it happen?"

Both Naruto and Sakura were dumbfounded that Sasuke had asked that. Truthfully, they would have been shocked had he done anything other than grunt, but actual words stupefied them.

"They died protecting the village during the Kyuubi attack," he told them after a pause. Iruka was starting to worry about Naruto's state of mind. He was probably still reeling from finding out about his prisoner. Iruka quickly asked if there were any other questions, when none became apparent he pointed to Sasuke.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. My goal is to one day reinstate my clan and kill a certain person. I became a ninja so I could – be like someone I once admired," he said in a mostly steady voice. His hesitance at the last words he spoke seemed to indicate a deeper pain.

Iruka nodded politely at him.

"To reinstate your clan is a noble goal. But I'm afraid that true ninja only ever kill while on missions, and even then, only when necessary. But we can talk about that later." Sasuke glared at him. Iruka decided to ignore that. "Sakura, how about you go next?"

Sakura took a moment to compose herself, and then spoke. "My name is Haruno Sakura. Uh, my goal is—" she stopped talking mid-sentence to glance at Sasuke and then shrieked and blushed. She then continued as if nothing had happened. "And the reason I became a ninja is – well, I wanted to be strong."

Iruka just decided to go ahead and ignore her first answer – it wasn't like he had any great insights into the mind of a preteen girl to begin with. Instead, he focused on her second answer.

"There are many ways to be strong, Sakura, and many paths to get there. But they all require sacrifice and dedication. If you're prepared to give me those two things, I'll do everything I can to help you become strong," he told her with a smile on his face. She smiled back.

Iruka looked at Naruto. "Your turn."

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto," he said while jumping up from his sitting position into a crouch and pointing a finger at himself. "And my goal is to become the Hokage and have everyone recognize how awesome I am! The reason I became a ninja was so I could be just like my hero, the Shodaime – the most awesome Hokage of all!"

Iruka smiled.

"Better not let the Sandaime hear that," he admonished him playfully. "But truly the Shodaime was a powerful and well-loved man himself, and serves as a great example to follow."

Naruto beamed at him.

After a moment, Iruka sighed as he bolstered himself for the next part of what he had to do.

"Unfortunately, I regret to tell you that your first lesson as Genin is this: life isn't fair." The three Genin looked at him curiously. "Your graduation last week was merely the first part of the real test to see if you are worthy. Tomorrow you will go through another test, and if you fail you will not become ninja. This test is exceedingly difficult, and generally only one out of three people pass."

After a short pause, the three Genin began protesting vehemently. Iruka responded by drawing his sword, and driving it several inches into the ground. The sudden, violent act shocked them into silence.

"Do you think this is some sort of game?" he asked in a low growl, and then stared at each of his students in turn. "Ninja live for this village – if it's necessary they even die for it. In order to become a ninja you must be willing to give everything you have – and then you'll give even more. This life is not for the weak. Only those who carry the Will of Fire can move on to the next level."

He stared at each one of them again.

"Training Ground 7. Tomorrow. Nine A.M. – Come prepared for battle. Or don't come at all."

With that said, Iruka took his sword, cleaned it with a small rag, and placed it back in its scabbard in one fluid, practiced motion. No one said anything as he walked away.

**End of Chapter 2**


	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 3

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by…You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 3**

Iruka spent that afternoon thinking about his students, trying to remember everything he could of the way they fought in spars. It was important that he showed them just how powerful an opponent he was. If he didn't dominate them they could very well lose respect for him as their teacher. Worse, they wouldn't think he could protect them in a real world battle scenario.

Sasuke, for example, was a hard target to pin a strategy on. He had no real obvious weaknesses other than his inexperience and his personal issues. On top of that, he had a sneaking suspicion that Sasuke might have been holding back during his spars in the Academy. So he needed to be careful around him, and not get too cocky. Iruka had the advantage in speed and raw strength, but who knew how much ninjutsu that kid really had at his disposal.

Sakura may not have been a powerhouse, but she had impeccable aim and a natural instinct when it came to setting traps. He needed to keep her off-balance. If she had time to come up with a strategy or set some traps, she could easily surprise him. Underestimating the girl was potentially dangerous.

And then there was Naruto. Iruka sighed.

If there was anyone who was guaranteed to surprise him, it was that guy. Naruto didn't just think outside the box, he wasn't aware a box existed. Whatever he did to neutralize him, it needed to be quick and direct. Anything that gave Naruto time to think on his feet would inevitably backfire.

Not to mention, Naruto could just overpower him with a thousand different shadow clones like he did with Mizuki. Iruka couldn't help a smile coming to his face.

And then he frowned.

He face-palmed.

And then started slamming his head against the nearest wall, while resisting the urge to cry.

He had forgotten about his own weakness.

Sexy-no-jutsu!

He was doomed.

* * *

><p>Iruka stared blearily into the morning sky as he sipped an extra strong tea. Stupid hangover. Stupid headache. Stupid sun. Did it really have to be so bright so early in the morning?<p>

Preparing for battle while fighting a massive hangover – what a brilliant plan!

Iruka sighed and then quickly drank the tea. It was necessary and couldn't be helped. Best to just soldier on as best he could and hope his plan worked.

He made his way over to the training field a full two hours before the morning deadline. None of his students, had showed up yet. He supposed it was possible they could be hiding, but he doubted it. He then quickly yet meticulously prepared his battlefield.

* * *

><p>The first to arrive had been Sasuke, who got there nearly twenty minutes early. He found Iruka sitting out in the open, meditating. He said a quick good morning to the Genin and then closed his eyes and went back to his meditation. Sakura arrived not long after. He said good morning to her as well, and then stayed quiet. Finally Naruto arrived with only two minutes to spare and a piece of toast hanging out of his mouth. He greeted him as well, and continued meditating.<p>

At exactly Nine A.M., Iruka opened his eyes and took in his students.

"Well, you're all here, so I guess none of you chickened out." The three Genin glared mildly at him, but Iruka simply smiled back and then stood up. He made a show of stretching as if he were preparing for a light jog.

"It's a beautiful morning, isn't it?" he asked in a chipper voice. Again, more scowling. "Okay," he said still smiling, "everyone hand over your forehead protectors."

The three Genin just stared at him.

**End of Chapter 3**

* * *

><p><strong>Omake<strong>

**Preparing for Battle: Operation Immunity**

Kamizuki Izumo and his best-friend and frequent teammate Hagane Kotetsu walked into a bar. It was one that they frequented in between their regular missions.

Izumo and Kotetsu had known each other since the academy and were even placed on the same team. Luck had them often taking missions together even after they had become Chuunin years ago. Rather than fight it, the two friends decided to embrace this peculiar quirk of fate, even to the point where they had developed special techniques that perfectly complimented one another. As a duo they were often more effective than entire squads.

But it hadn't always been that way. Their duo had once been a trio. After all, academy graduates are usually in teams of three. And although it had been many years since those times, and although their teammate had taken a different path, that bond still meant something to both of them.

So when Umino Iruka had contacted them looking panicked and told them that it was an emergency, they both dropped everything and showed up.

They found him in a booth with a bottle of sake and a saucer in his hand. He downed the drink as they approached. Izumo and Kotetsu shared a concerned look. That had been unusual. Iruka indulged occasionally, to be sure, but he was mostly a social drinker. That he would be downing shots by himself was almost unthinkable.

"Thank you for coming," he told them when they sat down. He poured another shot into his saucer, but instead of downing it, he held it aloft. "Please sit."

"Iruka, are you okay?" Izumo asked.

"Not really," he told them somberly. "I've been promoted."

Izumo and Kotetsu shared another look.

"Uh, congratulations?" Kotetsu said after a moment.

Iruka scoffed.

"I didn't even know you were thinking of applying," Izumo said. Iruka was many things, but ambitious wasn't one of them. His only real goal was to be a ninja of Konoha. Beyond that, he never seemed to care. He was a lot like Kotetsu in that respect, but at least he was always responsible with his duties and took them seriously. Whatever ambition he didn't have, he made up for with dedication.

Iruka shrugged. "I was kind of desperate to get out of teaching and filled them out a long time ago. I never heard back, so I just figured it was never going to happen," he told them in a perfectly indiscernible lie. "But it gets worse."

"Worse than a promotion? Those bastards," Kotetsu said in a flat deadpan.

"I'm being made into a Jounin-Sensei."

Their jaws dropped. Jounin was one thing. But to be actually entrusted with Genin!

"How? Why?" they both asked.

Iruka shrugged. "I have no idea. But that's not the issue. I have to face my students tomorrow for their final exam. I can handle them, but – one of them has a highly unusual technique that – immobilizes me," he said in a defeated voice. He gulped his sake.

Kotetsu shrugged. "Is that it? What? You want us to help you train or something?"

"In a manner of speaking," he said as a dangerous light glinted in his eyes. Iruka's fist clenched and the saucer in his hand shattered. A drop of blood escaped his clenched fist. Izumo and Kotetsu looked unnerved by his actions.

"Uh, Iruka—?" Izumo began to ask hesitantly.

A large wallet was dropped onto the table, making a heavy thud that announced it was all but overflowing with money.

"In there is a significant part of my life savings. You have permission to spend every single coin in order to properly prepare me for this technique," Iruka said in a deadly calm voice.

"I still don't know what you want us to do," Izumo said, while Kotetsu picked up the wallet, hugged it to himself and began cooing to it.

"Sexy-no-jutsu! It is a powerful but flawed technique. I know how to defeat it!"

"Sexy-no-jutsu?"

"Yes! A technique developed by Uzumaki Naruto. Its purpose is to defeat perverts by overwhelming them with unexpected lust therefore producing a sudden lack of blood pressure to the brain, causing faint and/or dizziness. I am ashamed to admit that it can defeat me. But no longer will I allow it to do so. I will surpass my limits!" he said finishing in a loud yell that startled Izumo and Kotetsu.

"In order to defeat this technique I must surpass every single shred of prudishness I have. I will become the ultimate pervert!" His eyes turned dangerously to his comrades. "And you will help me. You will take me to every tavern, brothel, strip club, geisha house you can think of! You will expose me to the most debased, vile, kinky acts imaginable! You will immerse me in levels of sin and debauchery heretofore unthought-of!"

There was a deadly quiet power in the air that was shattered by the sobbing of one Hagane Kotetsu.

Izumo turned to his friend. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I have waited – so long – for this day!" he managed to say in between bouts of sobs.

Iruka merely looked down in disgust at his comrade.

"Idiot."

* * *

><p>Izumo opened his eyes. That was a mistake.<p>

The sharp twist of pain in his head protested the addition of light and he moaned. After a few minutes he managed to get to his knees.

That was also a mistake.

Only years of training allowed him to reach for a waste bin before he emptied the contents of his stomach all over the floor he had been sleeping on. Once he had finished vomiting, he began to take in his surroundings. It took a few moments, but he was relatively sure he was in a bathroom. And more worryingly, it wasn't his.

Eventually he managed to stand up and look at his face in the mirror – also a mistake. After a couple minutes of washing his face with the blessedly cool water, he began to feel slightly more human. More details jumped at him. For example, where did his bandana with his forehead protector go? His chuunin vest was also missing, but that was less worrisome.

A new worry made itself known when he noticed a lack of support in a certain private area. A quick check confirmed that he was going commando. He didn't want to think about it too much. Some things were better left unexplained.

He stumbled into the hallway, or what was left of it. The place was trashed. He arrived in the living room and was able to vaguely make out that he was in Iruka's apartment.

Izumo just barely managed to avoid stepping on his friend, Kotetsu, who was naked from the waist up with his pants unzipped. He was also hugging a partially deflated blowup doll. After a few kicks his friend woke up and began to moan in pain.

"Why, Kami, why? My head feels like I was slammed into a wall."

Izumo decided not to mention the large hole in the hallway, which actually looked like it could have fit Kotetsu's head. Instead he mulled over the fact that there was a significant amount of blood on his sleeve that he was pretty sure didn't belong to him.

Again, he didn't want to think about it. Instead he decided to raid Iruka's freezer for some ice. That might make his head feel better.

When he opened the freezer a grey blur escaped. It dove for his face, but Izumo just barely managed to duck out of its way. The creature hissed at them and dove through the window, shattering the glass.

"Was that – was that the Daimyo's cat?"

"Do you really want to know?" Izumo asked him.

"Oh, hell, no."

Izumo went back to the freezer. No ice, but at least he found his forehead protector. He pressed the cold metal to his head. That would just have to do for a bit, he supposed.

Suddenly, three gorgeous, barely-dressed women stumbled into the living room.

Izumo and Kotetsu's mouths dropped in surprise when they saw that one of the girls was wearing the Hokage's hat. When the girls asked where the door out was Izumo just barely managed to lift a finger to point to the exit. The girls left.

After a long pause, the two friends looked at each other. Silently, Izumo and Kotetsu walked over to Iruka's bedroom.

And there was the Hokage – unmoving, naked and tied up to the bed with rope. He also had a large grin on his face.

They quickly but quietly closed the door.

"Was he dead?" Kotesu asked.

"I – I don't know. But you should go check."

"What? Me? Why me?"

"Because," Izumo said after a moment, "you owe me for all those times I covered your ass when you shirked your duties."

Kotetsu shook his head. "No. I'm not doing it."

"Why the hell not?"

"Are you insane? You want me to go in there and wake up one of the most dangerous men walking the Earth? Screw that! I choose life!"

**End of Omake**

* * *

><p><em><span>Author's Note:<span>__ Short chapter. But I really wanted to write this Omake for a while now. Hope it was funny. I usually don't shill for reviews, but I was just in a car crash, and there's a possibility my car was totaled – still waiting on the news from the body shop. Hopefully it can be fixed. I got good insurance, but still – I loved that car. It was brand new. I hadn't even changed the oil on the thing yet. The whole ordeal has been bumming me out._


	4. Chapter 4

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 4

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by… You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 4**

Once again Iruka's students stood before him, dumbfounded. He didn't move, but his smile slowly turned into a frown, until all three of them began reluctantly removing their forehead protectors – the symbol that they were full-fledged ninjas of Konoha. He collected them and put them in a pouch on his vest.

"As I said yesterday, you are not ninja yet. Today you will finally have a chance to show if you are truly worthy. This isn't about points, or grades. There is nothing to quote or memorize. I do not care about your skill or form – this is a test of worth, of will, of honor – the intangible that makes one a ninja and not just another thug. The will to succeed, to surpass, to destroy limitations, and exceed expectations, all in the name of family and home – of Konoha. The Will of Fire – that which burns in the heart of all great ninja of this village."

Iruka looked into his students faces and saw three different reactions.

Sasuke was gritting his teeth, and his hands were shaking in excitement.

Sakura looked scared, but determined.

And Naruto had a confident smirk on his face.

"Your goal is to defeat me somehow," he said, and the three Genin showed apprehension. "Don't worry, you won't have to kill me – one-on-one none of you are strong enough for that anyway. But to have any kind of chance you'll have to come at me with intent to kill. Oh, and one more thing – I'll only be taking one apprentice today. The other two will be going back to the academy."

"What? But that's not fair!" Naruto screamed, while the other two yelled their agreement.

Iruka shrugged. "I suppose I might be willing to take two, if I see something special. But I doubt it. And three is just right out. Although, to be honest, I'd be surprised if any of you passed. Oh, and Naruto? I thought I told you yesterday that your first lesson as Ninja is that life isn't fair."

Iruka smirked. "Everyone ready? – Okay, we'll treat this like hide-n-seek. I'll give you ten minutes to hide, come up with a strategy, wet your pants, whatever – starting – now!"

Iruka resisted the urge to sigh when he saw Sasuke and Sakura take off in different directions. _At least they decided to hide_, he thought dejectedly. But it generally wasn't a good indicator that they didn't travel together, or at least take a moment to come up with some sort of plan.

Naruto on the other hand, hadn't moved. He glared at Iruka.

"All I have to do is defeat you, huh? No problem. We both know you're vulnerable to my technique."

Iruka said nothing.

"But how about I show you the new and improved version."

Despite himself, Iruka's eyes widened in fear.

"Harem-no-jutsu!"

And just like that Naruto combined his Sexy-no-jutsu with his Shadow Clones to create a vast field of naked, pouting, blushing, blonde beauties that rushed Iruka, so they could paw, swoon and coo at him. A moment later, Iruka had fallen over, a massive blood rush showering the ground.

Naruto released his technique and starting to pump his fist in the air when he felt a cold, sharp point poke the back of his neck.

"Interesting technique, Naruto. It might come in handy as a distraction some day. You now have nine and a half minutes before I start my attack."

"But – but – how?" Naruto asked sheepishly.

"This isn't the Academy. By the way, this is your second lesson as a ninja – possibly your last. Never turn your back on an enemy."

A bead of sweat, ran down Naruto's neck just as the tip of Iruka's blade edged just a little closer to him.

"Nine minutes, fifteen seconds – you should get a move on, Naruto."

Not needing to be told again, an orange blur quickly shot off to the relative safety of the trees.

Iruka quickly wiped away the small amount of blood that had trickled from his nose. Despite his "training" that had been a close one. He hadn't prepared himself for Naruto improving his Sexy-no-jutsu. Still, he was conscious and that was what mattered.

Operation Immunity was a success.

* * *

><p>Sasuke glanced down at his watch and confirmed that the ten minutes were up. But Iruka hadn't moved yet. He would have launched a barrage of Shuriken and Kunai at him but every time he was about to, Iruka seemed to look right at him, no matter how well hid he was. It was starting to freak him out.<p>

"Psst. Sasuke-kun."

He had to resist the urge to jump. He turned to find Sakura on a tree branch behind him. Sasuke was briefly puzzled as to how she managed to sneak up on him, but dismissed it as nerves.

"What?" he asked through clenched teeth.

Sakura seemed to shrink at his hostile tone, but spoke anyway. "I was thinking that we should try to work together. Maybe if we impress him, he'll take both of us," she said, finishing with a small hopeful, smile.

Sasuke just grunted in annoyance. "What would be the point in that? He's only taking one student anyway."

Sakura looked down, the disappointment evident in her every movement.

"I know I'm not very strong, but I'm sure I can help you, if you let me."

Sasuke considered her offer for a brief moment, but then shook his head. "You should hide. You'll just get in the way."

"But—"

"I won't be responsible for you. If Iruka-sensei attacks, I won't protect you. You should leave, if you don't want to get hurt. " Sasuke said, interrupting her.

A sad Sakura stared at him for a moment, disappointment clear in her eyes, and then wordlessly leapt away, hiding in the foliage. And Sasuke was actually surprised by how bad that made him feel, but he shook it off as unimportant. He needed to become a powerful ninja to defeat his brother. Nothing else mattered.

Sasuke stared at the point Sakura had disappeared to for a brief moment and then turned back to find Iruka.

But a cold shock of panic shot down his spine instead when he didn't see him.

"Where is he?" he asked quietly to himself.

"Right here," and then a sharp piece of steel landed softly on his shoulder.

Sasuke dove out of the tree, trying to get some distance. He just barely blocked a kick from Iruka aimed at his mid-section, and then managed to right himself enough that he could roll when he hit the ground, absorbing some of the impact.

He brought up a kunai, preparing to defend himself from an immediate retaliation from Iruka that never came. His eyes scanned the trees, but didn't find anything.

After nearly half a minute, Sasuke decided to get back in the trees. As he leapt, he saw something move out of the peripherals of his vision. Without a second's hesitation, he let a kunai fly toward what he saw, figuring it to be an attack from Iruka.

The kunai lodged in a tree, but hit nothing else.

Another flicker from his peripheral vision, and this time Sasuke let loose a barrage of shuriken. Again nothing was hit.

Sasuke was starting to become paranoid. Was this the true power of a Jounin? Iruka had never really impressed him before. He was nice enough, he supposed, and seemed to be a good teacher; certainly better than any others he'd previously had at the Academy. But he never seemed to be particularly powerful. Was all that just a bluff?

Another flicker and Sasuke turned toward it only to suddenly feel a crashing pain on his back. The impact launched him several meters away. He managed to roll some of the momentum off and come up in a crouch. His back throbbed as he tried to stand up.

Across from him stood Iruka, nonchalantly spinning a kunai at the end of his index finger.

"I could have killed you several times over, Sasuke. Is that really all you got? I thought you were supposed to be the rookie of the year. Perhaps I should revise your records."

Sasuke angrily grit his teeth.

"Don't underestimate me!" he shouted as he quickly formed several hand signs. A large plume of fire spat out from his mouth, engulfing Iruka.

When Sasuke finished his attack, his would-be Sensei was nowhere to be seen, and several small fires had been started in the grass and in the trees. Sasuke breathed heavily from the exertion of so much of his chakra. He had poured nearly half of it into that one blast.

There was a swift explosion of pain along the back of his neck, and then Sasuke knew only darkness.

Iruka took a moment to stare at the unconscious body of Sasuke, before observing the destruction from his Great Fireball Technique. He had been disturbed by the brutality of it.

"Well," he said while he rubbed the back of his neck in a sheepish gesture, "I guess I did tell you to go all out."

Iruka brought out a rope and quickly began to tie up Sasuke. He was filled with disappointment. When he had taken Sakura's form, he had thought for just a moment that Sasuke was actually going to team up with him. But no such luck, Sasuke was still too selfish.

_One more chance, Sasuke_, he thought.

As he put the final touches on the ropes, Iruka glanced up at the small fires and sighed as he thought about his words, "…I won't protect you."

_Just one more,_ he thought as his fists clenched.

* * *

><p>Sakura ran as fast as she could. She had seen a large plume of fire go up into the air just a few minutes ago. She tried to remember every single lesson she had ever had with Iruka-sensei, trying to remember if he ever talked about his own abilities. So far she was coming up blank.<p>

Sakura thrived on information, and right now she had none. She had no idea if that fireball had come from Iruka, or Sasuke – well, she was pretty sure Naruto couldn't have done it. Elemental manipulation was usually a Chuunin level technique, wasn't it? But then again, she didn't know Naruto could make so many clones either. She was actually impressed right until he transformed into a harem of identical naked women.

_Pervert_, she thought with a mental scoff. _Served him right._

Sakura's foot came down on something that produced a soft click, and immediately a rope wrapped around her foot. She just barely managed to launch a kunai at the ground, severing the rope before she would have been dragged unceremoniously up toward the tree.

Another snare trap. But this time instead of avoiding it completely like the other three she had seen, she just barely managed to escape. Had she not had a kunai in her hand, she would have been captured. Period. Sakura violently shook her head back and forth. No more distractions. She had to take this seriously.

The soft sound of clapping just behind her filled her with dread. She turned slowly to find Iruka with a large smile on his face.

"That was very impressive, Sakura," he told her in the same warm, friendly voice he often used while giving her pointers on her marksmanship. "Of course, you should have been more aware of your environment, but still – that was excellent improvisation. Although, often that trick is done with steel wire, meaning your foot would have been seriously injured if not simply severed completely."

Sakura didn't respond verbally, but her whole body began to shake almost imperceptibly. Iruka had been her teacher for an entire year. Yes, he yelled occasionally, but other than that he never seemed scary before. He had always seemed so warm and inviting. But now, with what he had just said, delivered in such a casual, friendly voice – she found herself truly afraid of him.

Iruka's head tilted to the side, and he brought a single hand up to scratch his chin, looking as if he was evaluating her like a piece of fruit at a stand.

"Sakura, did you know that you have quite simply the best chakra control I've ever seen in my life?"

Sakura slowly shook her head, treating the praise with suspicion.

"I mean it. You don't have much chakra, it's true. But with your level of control, it almost doesn't matter. I could help you hone your control and teach you genjutsu. In time, you could be a master. Sakura: Mistress of Illusions. Has a nice ring to it, don't you think? I wasn't lying when I said I could make you strong."

He was stroking her ego, she knew that. As smart as she was, she often heard that same sugary, sweet tone of voice in someone right before they asked her for "help" with their homework. He was up to something. She just didn't know exactly what yet.

"I'm thinking perhaps, I've found my student," he said finishing with a beaming of pride in his smile. "Assuming of course, you help me with something."

And there it was.

"I – I don't trust you," she finally managed to say.

"Oh, Sakura, don't you realize I could have defeated you already, if I wanted to? How about you hear me out?" When Sakura said nothing, he continued. "I really don't want to teach Naruto. Can you imagine having him on a team? Heck, I only graduated him from the academy because I felt sorry for him. But still, he shouldn't be a ninja. I mean, you must've heard those rumors, right? He's dangerous. He's a menace. He's – what was the word again? – Oh, yes – unstable."

Sakura flinched. She'd heard those things before from her mother. Fragments of conversations she would have with one of the other parents when she'd come to pick her up after school. A conversation that would stop as soon as her mother realized she was there.

But that was stupid. Naruto was an annoying, obnoxious little pervert. But he wasn't dangerous.

"All I need you to do is back me up when I write a report saying that he attacked you. It'll be perfect. That way he won't even go back to the academy. He'll just be back on the street where he belongs. So what do you say?"

Sakura stepped away from Iruka in horror. She was too stunned to even shout anything back to him.

He gave her a thoughtful look before continuing. "Hmm, maybe you need some more incentive. Oh, I know! How about I promise to take on Sasuke, as well? You two can be partners, and with my private tutoring you'll finally get to show him how good you are. It could be what you finally need to get him to notice you. So what do you think?"

There was a small part of Sakura that actually considered complying with all of that. And years from that moment she would always look back at that part of herself with genuine contempt.

Instead she launched a kunai at Iruka. He effortlessly deflected the attack with one of his own.

"Shut up!"she screamed. "What was all that talk about honor and the Will of Fire, huh? You want me to sell out one of my classmates just so I can have some boy? To hell with you! I thought you were a good teacher, but I was wrong. You're just another bully."

"I thought you wanted to be a ninja, Sakura," he said in a menacing, quiet tone.

"If that's your idea of a ninja then I'd rather be a civilian," she told him in the same tone.

Iruka's eyes narrowed.

"So be it."

Sakura screamed as Iruka let loose an impossible volley of kunai. It looked to literally be thousands. There was no time to move – no time to react.

And then she knew only darkness.

She had no time to realize that she had been in a genjutsu for nearly the entire conversation. And now that she was unconscious she would never see the genuine smile on Iruka's face.

"Way to go, Sakura," he said quietly, as he picked her up gently and placed her on his back. "You'll be a fine ninja some day."

* * *

><p>Naruto warily stepped around a trap, and then smiled when he didn't hear a click. Breathing a sigh of relief he stepped again, only for his arm to brush up against a small stick tied to a rope. The rope released a large rock that acted as a counterweight, suddenly bringing up the hidden net that engulfed him.<p>

Naruto cursed loudly. That had been maybe the eighth trap he managed to activate. Without a moment's hesitation he pulled out a kunai and began to cut away the net strings. Eventually he fell to the ground in a painful thud – which unfortunately activated the trap he had previously stepped over.

"Why?" he managed to ask in a small, defeated voice before he was dragged back into the air again. This time, while upside down and hanging from one leg. He wasted two shuriken before he decided to simply climb up his leg and slice off the rope. An act that was vastly easier to plan than do – the awkward position he had to hold, seemed to crush his lungs – but still he managed it.

He landed a bit more gracefully this time and even managed not to set off another trap. At this point, he'd take any victories he could. Iruka had his scary moments back in the academy – his obstacle courses were the stuff of legends – but this was just insane.

The entire training ground was some form of hell. If he wasn't getting caught in traps he was taking wide circuitous routes to avoid them, and then setting them off anyway. For every trigger he spotted, there were apparently at least two he didn't. Not to mention, he kept hearing strange noises and seeing things just outside of his peripheral vision. He figured out not to bother throwing kunai or shuriken after a while – he never even came close to hitting anything and his supplies were running real low. He was already down to his last set.

Naruto's fist tightened in determination. But he was still going to pass this stupid test. Iruka-sensei could try everything he wanted. He wasn't getting rid of him.

He walked into a clearing and stopped. There in front of him was Iruka, calmly sitting on a tree stump, eating an apple. Next to him were Sakura and Sasuke, who were tied up, gagged and struggling angrily.

"Been having fun, Naruto?" Iruka asked after swallowing his last bite. "I thought you'd get here earlier. Perhaps I went a bit overboard with some of the traps."

Naruto fumed, but didn't say anything.

Iruka finished his apple, tossed the core into a bag he had with him, stood up and smiled at him. "Congratulations, Naruto. You pass."

Naruto was shocked. "I – I pass? You mean I'm a ninja now?"

"Well, there's still some paperwork to muddle through, but, yeah. You're a ninja now."

Naruto wanted to whoop and holler, but he saw the look of anger and defeat in Sasuke and Sakura's eyes. "But what about them?"

"What about them?" Iruka asked with an arrogant smirk.

"Do they pass, too?"

"Naruto, come on. I was never going to pass them. They'd only get in the way, so I made sure to knock them out early."

"But – but you said we had to defeat you. Aren't we at least going to fight?"

Iruka shrugged. "Why? The test results are whatever I say they are. And who's going to believe a couple of sore-loser Genin over a Jounin? You're going to be a ninja, and these two get to go back to the Academy."

This felt wrong. He remembered seeing Sasuke throwing shuriken until his arms would shake. He could remember Sakura pouring over page after page of books in the library long after school was over. Their goals may not have been the same as his. But they had worked hard nonetheless.

"No, that can't – It's not fair. They both worked so hard. And I – I didn't earn anything."

"Says who? These two have treated you like crap your entire lives. And, frankly, they've had it easy. If you ask me, you deserve this."

Naruto paused for a long moment, feeling indecisive. But then his hands clenched into fists, his eyes narrowed and he shifted into a fighting position.

"No. This is wrong. You should evaluate us fairly. Sasuke and Sakura deserve a chance."

"Think about this, Naruto," Iruka told him in a far too calm voice, as he slowly drew his sword from his back. "This doesn't have to be hard."

"Yes. It does," Naruto said quietly.

The two stared at each other for a long moment.

And then they moved.

Naruto created a dozen clones, while Iruka launched a volley of kunai expelling most of them. He then launched his sword in a steady series of sweeps that destroyed the others. Naruto saw an opening and launched his own kunai. Iruka dodged it instinctively and then dropped a smoke bomb at Naruto's feet.

He leaped away from the smoke only to find a trio of Iruka clones waiting for him in the air. Naruto defended himself from them only to find that they weren't solid.

And that's when he felt Iruka's fist collide into his back. The pain from the flying uppercut was nearly overwhelming, but he managed not to faint. Unfortunately, he only had enough time to curl into a ball before he landed on the ground. He managed to roll with the fall to absorb some of the impact, but it was barely a token gesture as the air was knocked out of his lungs anyway.

He moved around for a bit, not staying in one place, trying to get his breath back. He tried to keep a look out for Iruka, but couldn't find him anywhere. After a moment he tried to summon more clones, but he caught a movement to his side. Two giant fuuma shuriken were heading toward him at different heights, one after another. He managed to dodge them, but was caught by a pair of bolas that hit him both high and low, tying up his arms and legs.

He crashed into the ground. He weakly managed to roll onto his side and caught sight of Iruka walking toward him with a kunai in his hand.

"That was pointless, Naruto. I'm a Jounin. You can't beat me."

Naruto grinned at him.

"Well – not by myself."

That was when Iruka noticed the familiar whistle of shuriken and kunai flying toward him. He quickly performed a replacement leaving a log to soak up the damage while he got a look at his attackers. There was Sakura and Sasuke running toward him. Naruto must have sent a clone to untie them.

Sakura spotted him and unleashed volley after volley of kunai. Iruka dove from one tree to another, dodging the kunai he could, and using his own kunai or the branches to block the few he couldn't.

Sakura kept up the barrage only to give Sasuke time to cut Naruto lose. And once he had, the three genin stood side-by-side, ready to face their supposed Jounin-sensei.

Iruka smirked. So far Sakura and Naruto had already passed their tests. All that was left was Sasuke's second chance. It was time to see if the heat of battle would show his true nature.

Iruka pulled out a scroll and released a weapon into his hands – a glaive. He spun the polearm weapon around him, and ran toward the genin. The attacks kept them off-balance, as he focused primarily on Sakura and Naruto. He used the bladed-end for intimidation and distraction and then would swoop in with the blunt end for a strike – after all, he wasn't trying to kill anyone.

He bided his time until finally Sasuke backed off and began the hand seals for another Great Fireball attack. Iruka pushed Naruto out of the way using the blunt end of his weapon. He flipped over Sakura, dropped his glaive, and grappled her toward his chest, using her as a human shield.

As he faced down Sasuke, there was just enough time before the flames left the genin's lips for him to see that his attack would hit Sakura square in her face. There was no time to think, only to react.

_I won't protect you._

Sasuke launched the ball of flames straight into the air, hitting nothing.

Sakura saw all of this from a distance, since she had only been in Iruka's arms for a split second before he had used a replacement technique to send her out of danger. In his arms, Iruka held a log. He had never intended to risk Sakura for the test – only himself.

There are moments in battles where everything stops, a space of time where there is but the briefest moment to reflect.

Iruka looked into Sasuke's eyes and saw a small boy who was horrified at what he had almost done.

Iruka smiled at him, and then dropped the log to the ground. He walked over to Sasuke, pulled something out of a pocket on his vest, and handed it to him. Sasuke looked down into his hands.

And he saw his forehead protector.

"Congratulations, Sasuke.

Iruka then tossed forehead protectors to Sakura and then Naruto. "Congratulations, Team Seven."

The three Genin stared at Iruka for a long moment.

Naruto's whoop of joy was the first noise to be heard.

**End Chapter 4**

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry, that took so long. But I didn't want to do a straight-up bell test, and that meant this took a while to get down right. I have also been incredibly busy, but who isn't these days? Something is always cropping up.<strong>

**I hope this was worth the wait for everyone. I'm real thankful for every review I got. Especially, since so many of you seemed curious about where this will go. And I'm glad people seemed to enjoy the omake. I might do more later.**

**I'll try to respond to a few reviews this time. My goal is to make the time.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 5

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by… You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 5**

Iruka smiled as Naruto danced around, but the other two genin just stared at him confused.

"You can put them back on now," Iruka said as he walked over to a small backpack that was hidden between two rocks. "You passed. Now, how about a snack?" he asked, before instructing Naruto to grab some firewood while he pulled a bag of marshmallows out.

Naruto obeyed and soon enough, Iruka had started a fire. When the genin sat down to start roasting them, he spoke up.

"I'm not the most powerful of ninja," he admitted to them quietly. "But I study constantly, and train myself vigorously. A true ninja never stops learning, in my opinion."

He stood up to grab his glaive, and sat down again. "Our missions are usually dangerous, but there are steps we can take to minimize the danger. We move quickly and quietly. Plan ahead. Avoid unnecessary combat. And if you have to fight, fight on your terms. Prepare your battlefield. Plan at least two escape routes," Iruka said with a humorless smile.

"All of that sounds good, of course, but life is usually not that simple. There's an expression – whatever can go wrong, will, and at the worst possible moment. I'm not quite that pessimistic, but I do think it's better to prepare for the worst, within reason. Plans fail. Clients lie. Intel can sometimes be laughably wrong. And sometimes – sometimes you're just unlucky," he said with a defeated tone in his voice. He performed a series of seals, and the glaive disappeared into a scroll that he then rolled up and put away.

"That's why we have squads. That's why teamwork is so critical. Yes, the mission is important. But to abandon your teammates – those people are traitors, and do not deserve to wear the symbol of Konoha. And that's why we have this test and others like it.

"According to our most reliable intel, we have the second lowest graduation rate for academy students among all the villages. Only Kirigakure is lower – and that's because their practices are utterly barbaric. But compared to the rest of the other villages, our graduation numbers are dismally low. Even Suna which is much smaller than we are, graduates a significantly higher percentage. For every ten students who enter the academy, four will pass the requirements of graduation. Of those four, perhaps two will become true genin. In some years, it is less than that."

Iruka sighed and stared up into the sky for a moment.

"Even now, many of the students who graduated with you are being sent back home without their forehead protectors. A brave and stubborn few will reenroll and try again – most will not. Six months from now a new cycle of students will have the same happen to them. It's sad in a way, but necessary. Konoha's strength does not come from the quantity of our ninjas, but their quality – Your marshmallow is on fire, Naruto."

Naruto who had been paying rapt attention to Iruka suddenly noticed the high flame at the end of his stick and, startled, began shaking it wildly to put it out. Amazingly, he managed to put out the flame without injuring himself or anyone else, so Iruka continued.

"What we value here in Konoha is the ability to work in a team. Any who cannot understand this, is not fit to be ninja. Other villages use squads as well, but they place more emphasis on individual achievement. They believe us weak for grooming ninja to depend on one another. So they underestimate us in battle – and then they die," Iruka said with a smirk.

"Because of my teammates I have survived battles where I was clearly outclassed, and certain to die. The strength of our bond overcame any individual weaknesses we had – and that is what I expect from each of you. You will learn each other's strengths and weaknesses. You will learn to move together and anticipate each other's attacks. And you will develop plans and contingencies that take all of this into account.

"Individually, each one of you has great potential. But as a team, fighting together – you may very well be unstoppable."

Iruka took a bite of his marshmallow. And then he began reviewing the day's events with his new squad, going over their mistakes and successes, giving them pointers where appropriate and occasionally asking the other genin their opinions.

* * *

><p>Iruka sighed as he finished putting away the last of his traps. He was a squad leader now, he should have made his genin help him with this, but it just hadn't occurred to him, so he dismissed them. He was too used to working on his own, to realize that he was in a position to make other people do his bidding. He could admit to himself that leadership didn't come naturally to him. But given the circumstances he supposed he was just going to have to get over that.<p>

He hefted his backpack and began the walk to the Hokage's Tower. He had to report his team passing their final exam. After a few minutes he realized he was only a brief detour away from the Memorial Stone. For some reason he was feeling nostalgic, and decided to head there. He had plenty of time before he had to report in, after all. Given the day's events, it would be nice to trace his parent's names with his finger again. A reminder of why he became a ninja in the first place.

Maybe this weekend he could go visit their graves. It had been a while.

As he approached the small monument, he noticed a ninja in green sitting next to it staring hard at the monument. This wasn't unusual, sadly. He hoped he wouldn't be intruding. He walked over to the monument, and bowed to it, before beginning a brief prayer. This time he prayed for guidance from his parents. He didn't want to fail his students.

When he was done, he knelt down to the monument, found his parents names and traced the characters with his fingers.

"Umino Minoru, and Umino Noriko, eh?" the green-clad ninja asked, having noticed the characters.

Iruka turned to the man, and took note of his somber mood before he answered. "Yes. They were my parents. Did you know them?"

The man smiled in a sad way. "I worked with your mother on a mission once. She saved my life. She was a strong shinobi. You should be proud."

Iruka smiled back. "I am." He then laughed. "Sorry, I'm forgetting my manners. Umino Iruka," he said, introducing himself with a small bow.

The ninja stood up with a dramatic flourish, and returned the gesture, albeit in a more grandiose way.

"Maito Guy, at your service!" Guy then glanced at the Stone, his somber mood returning.

"A comrade?" Iruka asked, referring to his reason to visit the Memorial Stone.

"And a good friend."

Iruka nodded, understanding the sentiment perfectly. His parents weren't the only names he knew on the Memorial Stone.

"I just found out about it today," Guy continued. "My friend died on a mission – hard to believe – but as the saying goes 'even enemies get lucky sometimes.'"

Iruka said nothing.

"I come here, perhaps, once a month. It's healthy to remember those we've lost. But my friend came here every single day. He was obsessed with this stone, obsessed with his failures. He didn't know how to let go. I hope, at last, he's finally found some peace."

Guy suddenly stood at attention and saluted the stone. A moment later and Iruka did the same, withdrawing his salute only after Guy withdrew his. They stood there for nearly half a minute. When Guy finally let his arm drop, Iruka pointedly ignored the few tears that escaped the man's eyes.

"Thank you," Guy told him in a shaky voice. Iruka wasn't sure why he was grateful, but thought it best not to ask.

"What was your friend's name?" he asked instead.

"Hatake Kakashi – the Copy Ninja."

Only years of schooling his reactions saved him from saying or doing anything suspicious. Instead he made a noise of commiseration, and responded with, "Truly a loss to the village then."

"Yes. It is."

Guy turned around and walked away.

Iruka stayed by the monument for a few more minutes, and then walked away, resisting the urge to sigh. He suddenly felt like he had a lot to think about.

* * *

><p>The next morning Iruka met his new squad outside at the training grounds. He immediately put them through some light calisthenics and then a run around the grounds. Then more exercises, followed by more running. Finally he let them rest. Sasuke kept up very well. Naruto looked ready to run a marathon still. But Sakura was nearly vomiting – her stamina was sorely lacking. That was something that could be corrected later though.<p>

"Okay, I want everyone here to show me the various techniques you know, starting with – Naruto."

Naruto went through his various techniques including shadow clones, and a still shaky simple transformation, but when he was about to perform his Sexy Technique, Iruka stopped him – figuring he might as well save him from a mostly well-deserved beating from Sakura. Naruto might have been a sweet kid, but he had almost no concept of propriety.

"That's okay, Naruto, we know about that technique. Remind me later to have you read some scrolls on etiquette. But for now – Sakura, name me at least three examples where the Sexy Technique or the Harem Technique could be useful."

Sakura scowled at him. "Sensei, those perverted techniques have no place in a ninja's repertoire. They're useless."

Iruka shook his head. "I'll admit they are highly unorthodox, not to mention wildly inappropriate, but there really is no such thing as a useless technique. Some techniques are better suited for one situation than another, true, but they can all have their place. So try again, and keep an open mind and be creative."

"Well, I guess it could be used as a distraction," she finally said after a brief moment to think it over.

"True. It is certainly not a technique one would expect. And because of its unconventionality it might make someone underestimate Naruto. And there are very few things as dangerous as underestimating an enemy. Anything else?"

Sakura thought it over. "I guess you could use them as bait for a trap for perverts."

Iruka chuckled at that. "Indeed. What else you got?"

She thought it over for a moment before sighing, "I can't really think of anything else. I mean, being naked limits their use."

Iruka nodded. "Good point. Naruto, do you think you could do the Sexy Technique but give her some clothes?"

Naruto shrugged. "I guess. What should she wear?"

Iruka thought it over for moment, and then realized he had no idea what were the proper colors for a high-class kimono. "How about a blue kimono with a red sash," he finally said with a shrug. He was sure he had seen something like that before.

Naruto concentrated for a moment and then performed his technique. There was a puff of smoke and then a whiskered blonde with pigtails in a blue kimono appeared. Funnily enough, the blonde girl actually looked more uncomfortable wearing the kimono than it usually did being naked.

"Does the kimono look, alright," Naruto asked. It was odd to hear that even his voice changed to a more feminine one.

Iruka smiled sheepishly, "Actually, I'm not sure. I'm not exactly good with fashion."

Sakura sighed, and then jumped down next to Naruto to get a closer look. "Kimonos are supposed to be made out of silk. This needs to be much softer."

"Uh, okay," Naruto transformed again.

"No softer. Haven't you felt silk before?"

"No."

"Maybe, if I took you shopping –" Sakura said leadingly, thinking about it.

"Perhaps later," Iruka said, with more than a trace of amusement in his voice. "Either way, Naruto, with a bit of research and training this could be a very effective disguise. Sasuke, your turn, how could Naruto use the Sexy Technique?"

Sasuke gave it some thought and then shrugged. "Hey, Naruto, when you do the Harem technique you're combining Sexy with Shadow Clones, right?"

Naruto nodded.

Sasuke scoffed. "You idiot, why don't you just use a regular transformation and turn into one of us? You could make a fake squad for distraction and escape."

At first, Naruto looked like he wanted to kick Sasuke's ass for the "idiot" comment, but the rest of what he said did make him wonder.

He transformed back into his regular self, produced three shadow clones and then had them transform into imperfect copies of Iruka, Sakura and Sasuke.

"Oh for crying out loud! There's no way my nose is that big! Here, let me show you." And Sasuke dropped down next to the clone who was disguised as himself so he could get a better look. Sakura gave her own doppelganger pointers as well.

Iruka smiled as the three students began a back-and-forth discussion about the merits of combining clones with transformation and the possible strategies they could use.

_Would you look at that,_ he thought, _they're bonding._

* * *

><p>In a wealthy district of Konoha there was a well-kept home. It was not particularly large, certainly not by the comparisons of the homes next to it. But it was neat, tidy and served the purposes of its owner and sole occupant.<p>

The owner sat on a mat reading a scroll by candlelight. He felt a presence, but did nothing in response. He finished reading his scroll, and put it away.

"You may now report."

An ANBU stepped into the candlelight and dropped to one knee. "Danzo-sama," he said emotionlessly. "Team 7 began their training today."

Danzo did not so much as move a muscle, let alone respond.

"Iruka-san's method of instruction is – unusual for a Jonin."

Again silence.

"He seems to be stressing teamwork, openness and the sharing of strategies – in short, he seems to be training them as if they were an ANBU squad."

When the operative didn't continue, Danzo dismissed him.

_Like ANBU – what an interesting thought._ And then Danzo did something that most people would have thought impossible for him.

He smiled.

**End of Chapter 5**


	6. Chapter 6

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 6

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by… You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 6**

At least once a year, some hotshot Jounin thought that they could produce the next Legendary Three. This led to students sometimes being passed into the rank of Genin even when they didn't really deserve it. Thankfully, there were enough safeguards in place to nip this idiocy in the bud, so it rarely happened, and when it did, it was corrected quickly. But something that usually couldn't be curtailed as easily was rushed training.

The tree-climbing exercise was practically a rite of passage for leaf ninja. It was an exercise meant to hone chakra control, and build up reserves at the same time. It was a stepping stone to other techniques, in particular, water-walking and tree-hopping, a rapid form of travel developed by Konoha and eventually copied by all other nations – even those who had little chance to actually use it in their own homelands.

It was also an extremely dangerous thing to teach to brats with little self-restraint and something to prove.

The technique wasn't particularly demanding in and of itself. But students would often overpower the technique, wasting chakra, and then have to cushion their descent wasting even more. Now under the watchful eye of a sensei this wasn't too worrying. Any decent Chuunin could spot the tell-tale signs of chakra exhaustion long before it became a real issue and have the Genin take a break or call it a day altogether.

The real problems arose because – well, kids are morons. And tree-climbing was a technique that could be practiced anywhere in Konoha. They weren't the "village hidden in the leaves" for nothing. And, sooner or later, some ambitious little twit would try it out on their own and have less than spectacular results. The sad truth was more than a few Genin had died from broken necks, or simply running low on chakra with no one around to get them to a hospital.

But that wasn't their fault. That was their sensei's fault. You didn't teach a ninja a technique unless you knew they would use it responsibly. Not unless you were a maniac, or an overly ambitious idiot yourself.

Both students and their masters needed discipline and restraint.

Umino Iruka was not overly ambitious, nor was he a maniac. A bit unhinged, perhaps, but you didn't become a successful ninja without at least being a little crazy. Still, he wasn't about to teach a technique to students who weren't ready.

"Get out of my way, bastard!"

"Stop being clumsy, dead last."

"And don't insult Sasuke!"

And sweet, merciful Kami, were these brats unready.

"THAT IS **ENOUGH!**"

The chakra amplified sound of Iruka's voice left a pall of silence and discomfort in its wake. The three genin looked stricken when they saw their master's face.

"It amazes me that the three of you can't even get along well enough to paint a single fence," he said sternly. "You know what? Go home. You three have failed this mission, forfeiting any right to payment."

The genin immediately protested.

"Was I unclear?" he said, releasing some of his anger through his chakra into the air.

The three dejected looks the genin gave him as they walked away was almost enough to make him call them back – almost. Instead he picked up a paint roller and finished painting the fence, while mumbling under his breath about supposed "promotions."

* * *

><p>Iruka returned to his apartment that day dejected. He was failing his squad. Their shortcomings were his, and he was feeling them deeply. They argued constantly, and not in a teasing, respectful way. No this was full-blown, teenaged angst and drama unfolding before his very eyes, and it was killing any sense of camaraderie.<p>

Iruka sighed. As if things weren't stacked against them enough already?

It was bad enough that none of them had the support of a clan – well, technically, Sasuke did. But in Iruka's opinion a single person did not a clan make. But the bottom line was that without guidance from a clan, it meant that it fell to him to be their primary instructor in every aspect of their education.

Generally, genin who belonged to clans received additional instruction on clan techniques adjunct with their training under their Jounin-sensei. This meant that the Jounin sensei could focus instead on team-building and tactics.

Actual one-on-one instruction from a Jounin-sensei was actually kind of rare, but with his team, he essentially had to do it three times over. Iruka loved teaching, so it wasn't the work that he was going to have to put in that bothered him. It was that, no matter how hard he tried to mitigate it, his team had a big handicap built into their dynamic from the word go.

But that was manageable. Or, at least, it would be if they weren't at each others' throats constantly. Iruka remembered thinking that the three of them together would produce a feedback loop that fed on their hostility and negative actions – he really wished he had been wrong about that. If anything he had severely underestimated the intrinsic chaos.

It took some time, but eventually Iruka came to a decision. Sleep did not come easily after that.

* * *

><p>Iruka had arrived at the training grounds significantly early. He wanted to spy on his Genin for a bit. This might seem a bit underhanded to a civilian, but he could care less about appearances at this point. He was a man on a mission.<p>

Sakura arrived first, followed by Sasuke a few minutes later. Usually Sakura tried to strike up a conversation, but she seemed subdued, perhaps from being yelled at yesterday. Sasuke himself looked fidgety. He still managed to mostly look indifferent, but the signs were there to see.

Naruto arrived shortly thereafter, which alone was pretty telling. Naruto was never late, but he was never significantly early for anything either.

"Hey," he greeted them. The other two gave half-hearted greetings as well.

Iruka waited a few more minutes for – something. He wasn't sure what, but he was hoping that they would resolve their own conflicts somehow, maybe apologize, but nothing happened. And after a while, Iruka gave up the ghost and appeared.

He was greeted with winces and a half-hearted, "Good morning, Sensei," from the three of them. Part of him wanted to apologize for losing his temper, but he knew not too. He was their leader. It was his job to drop the hammer on them when they messed up, even if it made him squirm with guilt afterwards.

Everything was a lesson.

"Walk with me," he ordered them quietly. They followed in silence.

A short walk later they arrived at a nondescript, squat monument.

"This is the Memorial Stone," he said somberly. "It commemorates ninja who have given their lives in service of Konoha, our home. The names of our greatest ninja are here."

He paused.

"My parents names are here." The three genin stiffened, suddenly realizing the importance of this site.

"We have graves, of course, shrines, statues, things of that nature. Civilians remember the dead there. But this place – this stone. This is a place for ninja. Here, we remember our comrades – our friends. This is a small stone in a quiet, secluded place, hidden among training fields. You won't find it on any map, or advertised in some pamphlet. Most civilians aren't aware of its existence at all. And the few that do, know not to talk about it. This is a private place where we can openly express our grief and remember the fallen.

"It is said that to give your life in service to your country is 'the final act of devotion'. It's a romantic idea, but largely inaccurate. Ninja don't die for our countries – we die for each other. That is the true, 'final act of devotion'."

Iruka spent a moment observing the somber expressions on his team.

"I can make you a team, but I can't make you into friends. You have to do that. The time will come very soon when you'll need to rely on each other to survive, when you'll need to put aside petty differences, work together and accomplish your missions. The day may come when one of you must sacrifice themselves for one another."

Iruka took a deep breath before continuing. "I hope it never happens, but one day one of your names may be on this stone. And if not yours, it will be someone you know, someone you care about – maybe even someone you love. Life is short. A ninja's shorter still. My father once told me that ninja are shooting stars blazing across the night sky. I didn't know it at that point, but he was trying to tell me not to live my life in regret because at any moment, it could be taken away – just like he was."

Iruka started to walk away, but he spoke over his shoulder.

"Take a few minutes and think about what I've said. I'll be at our training grounds. Meet me there when you're ready."

A long uncomfortable silence descended on Team 7. But eventually Naruto decided to approach the monument. He got down on his knees so he could peer at the names. Darkly, he wondered how many the Kyuubi had killed.

Soon he felt a shift off to his side. The flash of pink at the corner of his eye told him it was Sakura. Naruto kept reading the names. A few moments later and Sasuke was by his side as well. Together, they quietly contemplated the names on the stone.

Naruto started to think about his teammates and what they meant to him. Sakura might not like him much, and Sasuke was a bastard, but they were still his team. And the thought of looking down on this stone one day to see one of their names made him want to throw up.

His fist tightened, and his eyes narrowed. Determination burned in his belly like a wild bonfire. Sakura and Sasuke's names would **never** be on this stone as long as he lived.

That was a promise.

* * *

><p>Iruka dodged a flurry of kunai. He couldn't see who had thrown it, but his intuition said it was probably Sasuke since he had the best aim. Another flurry followed soon after. But the lack of sound told him it was a Genjutsu. He dodged it anyway, just in case a hidden kunai was in the illusion. Sakura was already learning how to mix illusions with real attacks, something Naruto, the prankster extraordinaire, had suggested to her. But just as expected his dodge led him to another Naruto clone. His students were anticipating his movements, and setting up traps.<p>

He took out the clone with a single swipe of his quarterstaff. He then spun the weapon in a wide arc around him. Sure enough he clipped something solid. The yelp from the blow told him it was the real Naruto. A frenzy of clones set upon him, intent on either a solid blow or just a distraction so their master could get away.

Iruka's quarterstaff moved at blinding speeds, striking, defending and misdirecting. Five shadow clones. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Too many, far too many at once. The chakra smoke being released from the popping clones might as well have been a smoke bomb.

Naruto was improvising again.

Iruka produced four simple clones and used them as a distraction, taking off in different directions. Eventually, he had his clones regroup with him. They weren't solid, but they still allowed him a small element of surprise. He began to defend only, and directed his clones to do the same, giving the impression that he was being overwhelmed, but he made a point not to attack any of the shadow clones, that rushed him from all sides. But despite that, they got in each other's way and popped themselves at a rate that was almost as fast as if had been attacking them.

Finally, he noticed two clones who weren't yelling madly like the others. One, then two. He struck them both with light taps on the upper arms. The transformations released revealing Sakura and Sasuke among the tumult, rubbing their arms. Iruka then executed a substitution. And a throng of Narutos crashed into a log, leaving only one cradling his fist and screaming obscenities.

Iruka smiled at the three students on the ground, and called for a halt. He then began going over the spar with his students, discussing their strategies, what they did well, and what needed improving. And all the while he was positively beaming at them.

His student has accomplished a ridiculous amount of growth in a very short amount of time, and he could not be happier. To think that merely a week ago, he had scolded them for a lack of teamwork, sending them home with a failed mission. And now he was struggling to keep up with them during spars.

He had concluded his analysis and allowed the genin to have their own input about the spar – which was less for technical evaluation then it was an excuse for Naruto and Sasuke to one-up each other in what was developing into a friendly rivalry. As opposed to a week ago when they had been at each other's throats, instead of being biting or scathing, it was genuinely light-hearted and amusing. Even Sakura was struggling not to smile at their antics.

Eventually he calmed the boys down and started to assess his team. Sakura had looked a bit winded just after the spar, but was breathing easily now. Her stamina had improved quite a bit since the academy. As per usual Naruto and Sasuke could have taken on armies single-handedly they were full of so much energy. He didn't see any of the typical signs of chakra exhaustion either.

He came to a decision.

"We still have some time, so I'm going to show you all something special."

Naruto shot up to his feet like a rocket.

"Ooh, ooh! Are you going to show us a new technique, Iruka-sensei?! Huh?!"

Sakura rolled her eyes and gave Naruto a look that was somewhere between annoyance and amusement. Still she looked excited as well. Sasuke, on the other hand, was trying to project a stoic expression that failed in light of the hungry look in his eyes that mirrored Naruto's.

"Technique," Iruka said, scoffing. "What I'm going to teach you is way better than any technique. I'm going to show you how to climb trees."

Almost immediately the excitement faded from Naruto's eyes. He sat down again and crossed his arms, a grumpy expression on his face.

"Oh, man. I thought you were going to teach us something cool, Sensei. I mean, anyone can climb trees."

Iruka laughed openly.

"Actually, Naruto, you're wrong. Not just anyone can climb trees."

He then proceeded to walk towards a tree. When he reached it, he simply walked up it as if gravity suddenly forgot itself. He hadn't even bothered to remove his hands from his pocket, or change his amused posture one bit. When he had gone up about twenty feet, he turned around and faced his students from up high. The three stared back at him with jaws open in amazement.

"First, you have to be ready," he said with a smug grin.

**End of Chapter 6**


	7. Chapter 7

**Title:** Iruka Sensei – Chapter 7

**Author:** Wicked Raygun

**Summary:** After a tragic accident, it is left up to Umino Iruka to become the Jounin-sensei of Team 7.

**Disclaimer:** Based on characters owned by… You get the idea. I don't own this. I'm certainly not making any money. And suing me is a waste of time. I'm glad we had this little chat.

**Spoilers:** Takes place at the very beginning of the Naruto series. I'm more familiar with the anime than the manga – yeah, yeah, I know. Blasphemy! I should also mention that I have little regard for continuity if it doesn't suit my purposes. So this will likely end up being AU for more than one reason. And I don't do thinly-veiled bash-fics, so if that's what you want you're going to be disappointed.

**Distribution:** Ask and you shall receive. I'm pretty easy-going with this type of stuff, so if you'd like to put up the story I'll almost certainly let you. My only caveat is that you ask first and credit me appropriately. So just email me and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

* * *

><p><strong>Iruka Sensei<strong>

**Chapter 7**

Iruka looked like a confident man, ready to conquer the world at a moment's notice. But that was an act. Really he felt like he might vomit at the slightest provocation. His team had been doing well. So well, in fact, that even he had to admit that there was no real justification for not requesting higher difficulty missions.

Still he had to psyche himself up before standing in front of the Hokage and asking for any C-ranked missions. He hadn't warned his team that he was going to do this, so their exclamations of shock and then elation gave him the cover he needed to release a shaky breath.

Of course, the Hokage noticed anyway. What followed was a two-way, silent communication where the old man looked deep into his eyes and Iruka stared back this time with assurance. The Hokage gave the very briefest of nods before reaching toward a stack of scrolls.

"It just so happens that I have the perfect thing here – an escort mission to Wave."

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><p>"I don't see why I have to be polite to him, Iruka-sensei. He was the one who started it."<p>

Iruka sighed. "Perhaps, but he's our client. It behooves us to be polite and courteous – even if we don't want to be."

Naruto growled in annoyance, but nodded.

Iruka finished checking his backpack for supplies, giving him only a mild reprimand for bringing instant ramen, but since he had also brought everything else he was supposed to, he left it at that. He hadn't disobeyed an order, after all, just skirted around the sides. That was acceptable.

Traditional militaries were often baffled by the lax regulation ninjas ascribed to. Everything from dress code to chain of command was negotiable. Soldiers valued obedience, discipline and regulation; whereas ninjas valued loyalty, flexibility and spontaneity. It wasn't a matter of right or wrong, but a difference in need and function. Ninjas weren't soldiers, and soldiers weren't ninjas. Period.

That wasn't to say that a ninja was never meant to follow orders, but more accurately that the execution of said orders were often left to their discretion.

Take their new client, Tazuna, for example. It had been obvious from the very beginning that he was hiding something. A Jounin and a Genin squad were more than suitable enough for what should be a simple escort mission of a non-VIP. If anything he was getting a deal, since something like this could have just as easily been handled by a couple Chuunin.

And, yet, the first thing Tazuna did was question their abilities. Yes, it could have just been a result of his over-drinking, but Iruka didn't think so.

And why was he drunk to begin with?

Tazuna knew he was leaving that morning, and yet he had already been three sheets to the wind by the time the Hokage assigned them the mission. Perhaps he was just an alcoholic, but again, it didn't seem likely. There were varying levels of drunks, and one who frequently got plastered in the morning when they know something important was coming up, wasn't likely to be trusted with complicated things like overseeing the construction of a bridge.

Tazuna wasn't acting like a man who was mildly nervous about the possibility of bandits. He was acting like someone who was expecting to be attacked and felt guilty about lying to his would-be protectors. Again, perhaps the man was just paranoid. But there were just too many red flags to dismiss easily.

And if Iruka saw all this, there was no way the Hokage didn't. When Iruka had finally ushered his team out of the office, he gave the Hokage a questioning look.

"Let's see how it plays out," he told him quietly. Iruka nodded and walked out.

So now Iruka was left with the task of discovering Tazuna's deception, while keeping his team safe from possible harm. And to think, he had actually been arrogant enough to assume he might get a nice and easy mission for his squad. Stupid optimism – it never failed to kick you in the ass.

Iruka had his team flanking Tazuna in a triangle formation, with Sakura forming the front tip, walking just in front of their client. That left Naruto and Sasuke in the back coming up on the side of the roads. Iruka himself was walking far in front, with his hands in his pockets, and a practiced bored and distracted look on his face – the perfect bandit bait.

Perception was everything.

He had briefly considered telling his genin to act distracted as well, but decided against it. Naruto's excitement, Sakura's anxiety, and Sasuke's cocky aloofness was more in line with a fresh squad of Genin. And that more than anything would help to sell their vulnerability to any possible threats they might face.

After several hours of traveling, the bored look on his face was being steadily replaced by one of impatience – which wasn't completely an act. It had been a while since he'd done a simple escort mission, and he had almost forgotten how tediously slow they could feel. The amount of distance one could cover with tree-hopping made walking feel almost painful – and their client was far from a swift walker.

Iruka had to grudgingly admit that he almost looked over the puddle on the ground. But ninjas knew to look for discrepancies. His own Jounin-Sensei had been particularly harsh with that lesson. And a lone puddle on the ground in the middle of a late afternoon that had been warm and sunny all day was just not happening.

In fact, it almost seemed too obvious. Was this a double-trap? He couldn't spot anything else. Of course that didn't necessarily mean there wasn't some other hidden danger. There was always a better ninja, after all. But still, better to act on the information you have than raw paranoia.

Iruka casually turned his eyes to the side, and spotted a log suitably heavy enough for a replacement technique and resisted the urge to grin. That was the beauty of living in and around Konoha. There was always a log.

It was time to trip the trap, and learn whether they were the target, or their client. He had to make it look good.

He allowed himself to walk right by the puddle. When it entered his blind spot he immediately activated his replacement technique. From his new location, ten yards away, he saw a pair of ninjas emerge from the illusory puddle and attack the log that was transformed to look like him. The transformation ended immediately.

Iruka wasted no time activating a genjutsu that made the ninjas think that he had been stabbed and killed. He needed to see if they would attack his Genin, or if they would head straight for his client. But Iruka also realized his mistake when he saw the dumbfounded looks of horror on the faces of his Genin.

Damn. He had cast his genjutsu over too wide a net, ensnaring them as well. They weren't experienced ninjas yet. In theory they knew how to respond to an ambush, but they had never experienced the real chaos and carnage of battle before. Hell, Naruto was shaking! He could never have predicted that!

The two ninja ran right at a frozen Sakura.

Move!

Iruka was just about to dive forward to save his Genin. To hell with information gathering!

But Sasuke – bless that boy! – intervened. He stood in front of Sakura and unleashed a flurry of shuriken. The two ninjas dodged the barrage and then pressed their hands together, unraveling a length of sharp chain that connected their gauntlets. They ran toward the genin, while they laughed. The two Ninjas might have been insane, but it seemed more like a practiced bluff. And indeed the two brothers released the chain suddenly so they could skirt past Sasuke and Sakura.

One brother moved in front to incapacitate Naruto, while the other leaped high, intent on killing Tazuna. That settled it then. He was the target.

Naruto was still frozen, and Iruka wanted desperately to save him, but liar or no, the client was the higher priority. So gritting his teeth and vowing he'd break Tazuna in half if anything happened to his Genin, Iruka intercepted the leaping brother with a brutal kick to his ribs. He needed at least one alive, so non-lethal takedowns only.

That didn't mean he had to be too gentle about it.

The ninja he kicked was sent sprawling on the ground, but recovered quickly, and got back to his feet. Iruka didn't doubt that he had cracked ribs at the very least. This was a tough man to get up so fast.

Iruka finally had a chance to get a good look at him. A missing-nin of the Rain? No wonder he thought the puddle trick would work. A random puddle there is no big deal, what with the near-constant inclement weather. Probably didn't realize how out of place it would appear anywhere else.

He spared a glance to Naruto to find that Sasuke had once again saved one of his comrades. He was in the midst of brutally beating the other ninja. Tough kid. He had to remember to get him a commendation.

Iruka utilized another genjutsu to shift his image just off to the side to mislead his opponent. He moved in, easily dodged a swipe from the ninja's gauntlet, and then delivered a devastating uppercut to his chin. The ninja fell to the ground, knocked unconscious.

Iruka immediately began to tie down his new prisoner, he spared a glance to see both Sasuke and Sakura doing the same.

But Naruto hadn't moved yet. He was still staring off at nothing and breathing far too quickly.

"Naruto," he called out softly, but sternly. "Secure our client."

The boy broke out of his stupor and meekly moved over to Tazuna. There was shame dripping off of him with ever step.

Iruka wanted to comfort him, but he wasn't sure what to say. He couldn't think of anything that wouldn't sound patronizing. And then Sasuke called Naruto a "scaredy cat."

Iruka's eyes narrowed. Well, he could kiss that commendation goodbye.

That set Naruto off on a rant about never being too weak, blah, blah, blah – Iruka had already tuned him out by that point. Instead he was glaring at their lying, piece of garbage client.

"Tazuna-san, perhaps we should speak in private."

Naruto's rant came to a screeching halt when he heard his icy tone – the one that meant that they had gone too far and done something really stupid. Sasuke and Sakura were also dead quiet, recognizing it as well. But all three of them thought it was odd that it was focused on their client.

"Guard the prisoners," Iruka told them. Although the _listen in and I'll gut you_ was only implied, the three genin nodded and endeavored to dutifully follow both of his orders.

Tazuna may not have known Iruka well, but he could certainly guess what his tone had meant. And so he walked off with the Jounin with the sort of resigned gait a man condemned to death might use. But of course that was a silly fear. Iruka would never kill him, no matter what he said.

Death would be too merciful.

**End of Chapter 7**

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><p><strong>Sorry about the long wait folks. This has actually been done for a while, I just, well, forgot I hadn't posted it. Sorry. You may now commence with the shaming.<strong>


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